There was an article in the BBC a while back about two friends that met up for a walk in the country side, they drove to the meetup point. It wasn't the closest place they could have walked so they got fined.
Also IIRC, they were carrying a cup of coffee each so the police said technically they met for a picnic.
> if the police want to be arses
This is what's completely wrong about the situation.
Police officer had an argument with their spouse that morning and is in a shitty mood? Police officer was bullied at school and is using their power to punish the kind of person that looks like their bullies? Any number of entirely random things can change the "rules". Not good.
It's both sad and hilarious that going for a picnic is currently a criminal act.
Also, because some EU countries are claiming that crossing their borders is only allowed for essential reasons proven by documentation, the airport in the country of origin will prevent many people from even being able to board the plane in the first place.
We flew from Northern Europe to South Asia a week ago and the flights were filled 60-70%.
The pervasiveness of the UK variant in Europe would have been contained or at least decelerated with travel restrictions.
A living proof of this is both New Zealand and Australia. These countries still allowed for sea and air freight but banned travel. Both countries are roughly back to normal life, while we in Europe are still trying to blame pharmaceutical manufacturing vaccine output, as if that is the sole cause of our problems.
When is the last time you have even looked at one of them closely, let alone formed a close relationship?
It is something we humans have done our entire existence, until recently, yet many today go their entire life without such an experience.
I grew up outside a small rural town, running barefoot all over creation every chance I got, and most of the time by myself. These days I'm a wildlife photographer by avocation, and over the last couple of years I've gotten deeply into macro - I take pictures of wasps while they're doing wasp things, and as a result of that, I'm not only no longer afraid of them, I've kind of fallen in love with them. They are at this point by far my favorite insects, and high up among my favorite animals overall. I like them better than most mammals at this point, and some of the best pictures I've ever taken of a spider wasp, I got in my backyard last October. Aside from that, research papers on wasp ethology have been a gateway into entomology as a special interest, to an extent where if I had it to do over I might go into that instead of software engineering. I've even learned to make and bind books from scratch, initially because I wanted paper textbooks instead of PDFs.
All of that means a great deal to me. None of it makes up for the fact that, over the course of the last year, I've only been able to spend a few hours in the company of a friend, and none in that of colleagues. I'm somewhat solitary by inclination, and I think that makes it less hard on me than on most. But even for me, it's been hard. I can't imagine what it's been like for anyone who came into this both alone and without the good fortune of knowing how to be satisfied with their own company. These aren't good circumstances under which to have to learn that, and even the most cursory glance at the comments in this thread overall is enough to show that the success rate has probably not been high.
Yes, every so often you get someone like me, who can feel good for days about the pompilid wasp who turned up in his home office for an impromptu visit. Every so often you get a Birdman of Alcatraz, too. To suggest that everyone should just instantly be a Birdman - I mean, I get that you're trying to help, and I respect that. But you seem not to have given any thought to how to make your advice potentially useful to someone whose perspective differs greatly from your own.
It's an easy mistake to make - I do it often enough myself. But it's still a mistake, and it's why the criticism you're getting is warranted. The intention is obviously good, but the execution needs a deal of improvement.
Perhaps, then, it is worth re-evaluating how much we allow our lives to be controlled by threats and mass media messages.
I think it’s very healthy to avoid some government funded “services”, such as having children far away from government schools. If you are not paying, you are the product.
Would you recommend spending a couple of weeks on it? If so, are there translations to modern English, or is the original easy to understand for us in this century?
I don't know, indefinite lockdown.
It's currently illegal to sit on a park bench.
I'll do it anyway, of course, but it might not be legal.
[redacted] 97 days since it was last legal for me to have a friend over for a cup of tea.
You know in the movies where at some point the psychotic main character thinks "I'm not the crazy one, it must be them"? I flip flop on this every other hour.
However, it didn't have to be this way. The UK practically beat the pandemic over summer, and then snatched defeat from the jaws of victory by persistently ignoring reality. Reopening schools, Eat Out To Help Out, failing to stop international travel - these are the things that led to the current situation.
Get mad, by all means. But place the blame where it belongs. We are doing the right thing now, in order to deal with the idiocy of before.
For me, it's the risk of death and/or a chronic condition, or the certainty of psychosis.
Hourly reminder that it's been almost 100 days since it was last legal for me to have a friend over for a cup of tea.
Best of luck, glad you're holding up well; sorry that I've failed you.
UK having what seems to be the most potent variant of the virus doesn't help, and the island factor either. Try to be strong, and don't let cabin fever tell you otherwise.
Based on their website, GP is likely in the UK. There’s vague hope based on vaccination rates, but given the number of self-inflicted own-goals by this government, anything more than vague hope now feels like setting oneself up for disappointment.
It's illegal for me to have a friend over because they made it illegal.
We have adverts trying to scare people into working from home, as if that's a choice.
The government is literally trolling us, just showing us that we'll do whatever as long as there's propaganda backing it.
Fuck this reality.
Now the bars have been closed for 3 months. Think anyone would remove that now useless limitation on selling alcohol after 20:00? Think again!
It seems that most people are catching coronavirus in private homes.
makes pubs shit to be in with distancing rules and masks etc
people start to socialise at home more
It seems that most people are catching coronavirus in private homes.
closes pubs earlier
people start to socialise at home more
It seems that most people are catching coronavirus in private homes.
close everything else, make meeting up outside illegal
people start to socialise at home more
It seems that most people are catching coronavirus in private homes.
I literally cannot come up with an explanation for this that isn't conspiratorial. For all of Boris' fluff, I don't believe that our Government is this incompetent or stupid - there has to be an ulterior motive here.
Our government demonstrably is this incompetent. Not just on coronavirus.
Wow now that everything is closed, 60% of infections are happening at home! Let’s restrict that!
Its just dumb.
It comes as no surprise to me that, if one person in a household gets infected, everyone else would too.
What's the government supposed to do about that? Social distancing on the sofa?
* quarantine the infected person outside the home * develop protocols to avoid infection of the others * use medication that blocks people from getting infected * use measures to block infecting the others
It is kind of strange that in this situation somehow the government is justified in taking no action. While in others apparently they are obligated to act.
I do believe the PM is this incompetent and stupid. He's demonstrated a total lack of belief in anything, and is utterly spineless.
(Un)fortunately, the same cannot be said for some of his staff. There's a certain special advisor who drove to a castle (and got a raise) who has an interesting history when it comes to his views on eugenics.
Especially the part about government trolling us.
Fuck this reality.
Never thought I'd say that in a positive manner though.
Wish you the better and best.
Minimizing contact and travel, together with masks and sanitation，is proven to work and currently the only solution- unless hey you have a non tyrannical alternative then please let me know
In some places, ruling parties have complained that they simply couldn’t prevent people from leaving even if they wanted to, because freely leaving and re-entering is enshrined in the country’s constitution. The UK, Australian, and New Zealand prevention on even leaving the country is much harsher than in most other developed countries.
"Minimizing contact and travel" is not the only solution, just perhaps the only solution you personally find palatable. Keeping borders open and simply accepting deaths works for me. Deaths are bad, but a new wave of nationalism and wall-building is worse.
Thats at least I gather from a Norwegian news site, but my Norwegian is not up to snuff.
May you find a way to move about freely in the near future.